ACC Tailgaters Continue 11 Year Tradition

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Greensboro, NC -- We all know the ACC has the country's most storied basketball history. But  WFMY News 2 found its tailgating prowess isn't far behind.

Everywhere you turn at the Greensboro Coliseum the parking lot is packed with people ready to party.

There's never a shortage of food, drinks and plenty of games.

But wait until you see the Labonte U.

"You might as well just live here for the weekend," said NC State fan Steve Mangum. "My truck hasn't moved an inch since Thursday morning and I haven't left the premises."

For more than 11 years now, a group of friends with ties to Terry Labonte Chevrolet has made a tradition out of camping at the coliseum.

For 2011, their five RVs form a 'U' and WFMY News 2 spotted them setting it up back on Tuesday. Forget the people who tailgate under tents. These folks have the tournament figured out.

"It's a great time, the tournament's a great time," said Mangum. "Greensboro does a great job putting everything together. I think we'd rather come here than any other venue for the ACC Tournament it's perfect."

And so is their setup.

We got a tour in and around their RVs early Saturday morning before the crowd or the grill fired up.

They can entertain as many as 125 fellow fans inside the U and Saturday's menu will probably make it a popular place.

"We're going to have chickens, lamb, salmon, that's to start," said Mangum.

The only thing better than the food or the setup might be the company.

Enemies inside the coliseum, red and Carolina blue mix well here in the U.

And the comraderie is why they keep coming back year after year.

"How could it get more perfect than that?"

Forget the people who tailgate under tents.

TailgateWiki: Keeping Tailgaters Informed

With all the “wiki’s” popping up online, you knew it was only a matter of time before there was one developed on our favorite subject: tailgating. Introducing TailgateWiki.com! It was developed loosely on the concept of Wikipedia, where everyone is an expert on something. The thousands of tailgaters that flock to stadiums all across the country are experts when it comes to their local stadium, tailgating rules, traditions, and hidden hints that only those that tailgate regularly know.

TailgateWiki.com is a place to share that information to not only “pay it forward” for your fellow hometown tailgaters, but for visiting fans alike. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to follow your team on the road, and still tailgate like you were at your home stadium? Rather than spending hours of research trying to find the right information on when gates open, if you could use charcoal, or what items are banned in the parking lot, you now have a one-stop-shop, where all that information is stored. TailgateWiki.com was started a few months ago, and some team pages are chock full of great information and insider tips. Check out a sample tailgate at the Chargers Tailgate Page.

You even can earn achievement badges based on your activity and how many pages you update. So get over to TailgateWiki.com, and start adding what you know.

7 Days 'Til College Football Kicks Off

That's right! Only 7 days left until college football kicks off again! Nothing like a "biggest hits" vid to get everyone back into the swing of things.

Show Off Your Team Pride at the Tailgate

I'm sure many of you have already seen the Carnivore (Ultimate Tailgating Pickup) featured in The Skinit Tailgate Pack commercials on ESPN. Skinit Tailgate Packs allow all sports fans to show their spirit by personalizing their vehicle with their favorite team’s logo, colors and mascot and celebrate the ultimate tailgate party experience. It's a pretty nice add-on to your more traditional magnet helmets and mascots.

“Skinit Tailgate Packs are a great way for fans to boldly show their team spirit while preparing and celebrating before and after the game,” said Paul Buss, CEO of Skinit. “Tailgating is so much of a part of the game-day experience today that we are now allowing sports fans to show their team loyalty in the biggest way possible – on their vehicle.”

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Monday Morning Wake Up Call: Virginia Tech

With the Virginia Tech / Alabama game less than two weeks away, these girls are already trying to find their tickets. Real-Time Tailgating is just around the corner!

Thanks to our friends at Southern Fried Football for this one.

Monday Morning Wake Up Call: Clemson

This week, we'll take it over to the ACC with Clemson, and their cheerleader double feature.

The HeelRaiser Tailgating Hearse

The original seed for this hearse tailgate vehicle was originally planted at a North Carolina / Clemson football game in the fall of 2003. John L. Snipes and a friend had traveled from Atlanta to Death Valley to watch John’s Tar Heels stomp his friend’s Tigers, which was a rare occurrence in those days. Walking through the tailgating area outside the stadium, they saw a white hearse with an orange roof. On the hood was a giant, orange tiger paw, and written on both sides was PAW BEARER!

It only took till February of 2004, in Cabbagetown, an old mill village near Downtown Atlanta, where he saw a 1974 Cadillac Hearse parked behind a bar/restaurant called “97 Estoria.” It had a “For Sale” sign with a phone number listed, which he immediately called. Within a couple of days, and a $1000 later, the hearse was his with a Bill of Sale written on a cocktail napkin.

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Monday Morning Wake Up Call: FSU

Can someone please explain to us how Florida State University missed out on the top ten of Playboy's Top Party School List?

Playboy Names Miami Top Party School of 2009

Last week, Playboy unveiled its annual "Top Party Schools" list, and perennial '80s party school, Miami, ended up on top. The magazine collected information from its staff writers and photographers, campus representatives, and thousands of college students. Rankings were "scientifically" based on bikini (scenery), campus, sports, sex, and brains. Yes, they added brains this year.

Anytime you release a list such as this one, the debates can rage on for months, or until next year's list is released. So let the debate begin!

Here's the 2009 Top 10 Party School list from Playboy:

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Aaahhh OOOOOgaaaa: The GT Tailgate Bus

In 2004, a small group of creative Georgia Tech alums "ended up with" a 1984 school bus. While sitting around a campfire one night, discussing the finer things in life, they decided to turn it into the ultimate Georgia Tech football tailgating machine, and the GT Tailgate Bus was born.

The exterior was painted to match the Ramblin' Wreck from Georgia Tech, a 1930 Ford Model A Sports Coupe, which has lead the football team onto the field at Bobby Dodd Stadium since 1961. Some liberty was taken on the hood of the Bus, which sports white flames!

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